“Impossible!” You say. “MY company doesn’t have the budget for marketing,”…or do you?

So you don’t have the big budget to go out and pay tens of thousands for a huge campaign, or media buys, or plan a huge event. Does that mean you should put off marketing? Hell no! Putting your marketing on hold until you can afford what you think you need is not always the best way to go. A talented firm can work with you – and your budget to help you get the most bang for your buck.

Marketing can be done in a multitude of ways; with affordable options including local advertising, direct mail, and social media, maybe it’s time for you to reconsider marketing yourself or your organization.

Sometimes the smallest piece can make the biggest impact!

Branding Basics

By Lauren Kolbe

Over the years, KolbeCo has been involved in a number of branding campaigns – either for brand new companies, or to refine a brand for existing firms. Some of the folks we’ve worked with have been around for 30+ years, and had just never been able to hone in on it. Regardless of the situation, there are several common pieces of advice that we always give our clients:

1.    Your brand is not your logo – your brand is a feeling, and an experience that each person you come into contact with has. It’s your story, and your promise, to your audience about what doing business with you or using your product will be like.  Think about Southwest Airlines. They’re all about low cost fairs, paired with a fun and memorable experience.  They’re casual, relaxed, and do things other airlines wouldn’t.  Remember the rapping flight attendant?  The freedom the flight attendant felt to do such a thing is indicative of the brand, and wouldn’t have been right on another airline. Which leads me to the next point …

2.    Don’t try to tell someone else’s story, tell your own – it would have been obvious that, say, American, was trying to imitate Southwest if they tried to get a rapping flight attendant, then let it go viral on YouTube.  That’s just not their story.  Or, remember the Avis commercials where they talked about being OK to not be #1? It just makes them try harder!  They crafted their own story, and a unique promise about the customer experience.  So while it’s OK to be aware of what your competitors are doing, never try to tell their story. You’ll never tell it as well as they do, and you won’t be able to create a brand for yourself doing it.

3.    Dig deeper, and live your brand – when we begin branding conversations with clients and ask what makes them different from others in the field, the first answers are always: “Value! Great Customer Service! Competitive Prices!”  Then we always respond with something like “Good for you! You’re in business!” We all laugh, and get down to the nitty gritty. What do those things mean for the customer? How does it create an experience? What’s going to happen when they walk in the door or pick up the phone to call your company?  I recently read the book “Delivering Happiness” by Tony Hsieh of Zappos.  They’re all about creating a WOW experience for clients and are willing to do whatever it takes to make that happen. In the book, Hsieh tells a story about his buddies calling the Zappos 800 number one night to see if the Zappos employee would help them get a pizza delivered.  Guess what? She did! Delivering that WOW experience isn’t about saying they give good customer service, they WOW every customer, every time even if it has nothing to do with shoes.

I’m a business owner too, so I know how hard it can be to really navigate these types of thoughts and conversations about your business. In many cases, it’s great to get some outside advice and someone to moderate discussions, push you to a different level, and ask questions you may not have considered.  Whether you get help with this process, or manage it on your own, remember the three points above as you start your discovery process. They serve as the foundation that will get you off on the right foot.

Proactive Public Relations

By Scott Kolbe

KolbeCo was recently brought in to help a well-known St. Louis company manage a public relations crisis; the event had garnered regional media attention.

Our client’s policy was to not comment during an event, but rather to provide a statement afterwards.

The nature of the client’s business includes families who are facing a difficult and personal time and their policy is simply to not provide media comments during such times. KolbeCo was brought in to help manage the media and to also assist journalists in understanding the guidelines in place to protect the client’s clients. The KolbeCo team immediately got on the phone with local newsrooms to take a more proactive approach, reaching out to those who would be covering the event. KolbeCo provided an on-site team as well as staff back at the office to manage media attention and field questions.

Our goal was to be open and up front with the media and let them know what the family was allowing and not allowing on this challenging day. Working with the media, we also managed their requests and questions. Through this process we were able to serve as the intermediary – allowing our client to focus on their core business and keeping their client from having to face a situation, they simply couldn’t manage at the time.

Ultimately we ended up with a very positive situation for our client, their client and the media, due in large part to the fact that we were well prepared and proactive in managing our internal communication.

In the end the client was portrayed well in the media and the media outlets thanked the client for being organized and direct in answering their questions. When facing a challenging situation, it often makes sense to bring in professionals to help avoid making a difficult situation more challenging than it already is.